A new look for Latham

Three properties will be cleared to make way for new projects

COLONIE — Demolitions are booming along Route 9 in Latham, with three different empty buildings being knocked down to make way for new development.

The biggest project by far is the imminent end of Latham Circle Mall, which will be replaced by an outdoor plaza to be called the Shoppes at Latham Circle.

Fencing has been put around the site, and demolition equipment is on the scene. The developer, Boston-based Grossman Development Group, met with the town of Colonie last week to discuss the upcoming removal of the mall, said Joseph LaCivita, director of planning and development for the town.

Mark Hebert, vice president of development for Grossman, said the visible demolition should begin within 10 days. Some work already has begun, he said, with the utilities disconnected and asbestos removed.

"We're starting a lot of the perimeter work," he said. "The building is free and clear for demo."

Hebert said he does not yet have any tenants to announce. Plans have long called for the Lowe's, J.C. Penney and Regal Cinemas space to remain while the rest of the mall is demolished.

Even though Regal Cinemas vacated its theater this month, Hebert said, the plans have not changed to keep that part of the building.

"We've always anticipated we're going to do some kind of an entertainment venue," he said. "That hasn't changed our plans. The theater that was there was likely to be gone."

That site will become a 9,000-square-foot shopping plaza owned by the Lia Group, LaCivita said.

A storefront that once housed Kiskis Tire and a Midas Muffler shop at Route 9 and Sparrowbush Road is also being removed.

That property will be used for two new self-storage facilities owned by Mabee's Self-Storage. The 54,240 square feet of storage facilities will be an expansion of a facility next door.

"All three of these buildings are long since abandoned and vacant," LaCivita said.

The latest work comes after the recent demolition of the Starlite Music Theatre off Route 9. Vacant for 14 years, the performance space is being replaced by new mixed-use development, with housing at the back of the property and office and retail space up front.

The former Kiskis Tire and Midas Muffler at Route 9 and Sparrowbush Road being demolished on Thursday Feb.28, 2013 in Latham.

Media: Times Union

The Galesi Group is partnering with the property's longtime owner, Eugene Weiss, to develop the land, with space available for 300,000 square feet of commercial development.

Also on Route 9, another vacant storefront was recently removed and replaced with a new shopping center called Saint's Plaza. "Some of these old and abandoned and tired buildings are being demolished and developed," LaCivita said. "That's what we wanted."